Ana Ivanovic news

Pat Rafter Arena was supposed to be Queensland’s “court of dreams” but it’s taken just five days to turn into a French fortress.

Marion Bartoli became the latest to continue the French resistance at the Brisbane International on Thursday night by booking a semifinal berth with a 6-3 6-3 thumping of Italian Tathiana Garbin.

A drained Ana Ivanovic will seek medical advice after a stomach illness yesterday led to her Brisbane International loss to a resurgent Amelie Mauresmo.

The reason for the wayward nature of Ivanovic's groundstrokes and sluggishness, both of which marred her win on Wednesday night, were exposed further by Mauresmo's 6-3 6-2 quarter-final win.

At one stage in the first set, Ivanovic put her hand over her mouth and looked like she was going to vomit.

Amelie Mauresmo may still be the biggest star in women's tennis in France, but she is no longer the brightest. She who inspired so many in her homeland is now ranked behind Marion Bartoli and Alize Cornet at No. 23 in the world, entering what may be her last season with more modest expectations but an enduring resolve.

Ana Ivanovic has denied her Australian Open campaign is in disarray after being wiped off Pat Rafter Arena by an evergreen Amelie Mauresmo.

Like fellow Serb and tournament top seed Novak Djokovic, Ivanovic bombed out of the Brisbane International meekly with a 6-3 6-2 upset loss to 29-year-old Mauresmo on Thursday.

The world No.5 was expected to sweep past the Frenchwoman, who had made tough work of her first two clashes against Jelena Dokic and compatriot Julie Coin, but it was Mauresmo who shone in the 67-minute quarterfinal.

Former No 1-ranked Amelie Mauresmo ousted top-seeded Ana Ivanovic in straight sets on Thursday in the Brisbane International quarterfinals.

Mauresmo, the Australian Open and Wimbledon champion in 2006, dropped serve only once while breaking Ivanovic five times to advance to the semifinals 6-3, 6-2.

Ivanovic, the 21-year-old Serb who spent 12 weeks at No 1 last season while making the Australian Open final and winning the French, frequently followed stinging forehands with unforced errors.

An exhausted Amelie Mauresmo had to ask how many match points she failed to convert after finally completing her version of 'The Great Escape' at the Brisbane International.

The answer was four, all in a spine-tingling 24-point final set tiebreak on Wednesday against French compatriot Julie Coin, a qualifying lucky loser.

It took her nearly three-and-a-quarter hours, but fifth seed Amélie Mauresmo kept her title hopes alive at the Brisbane International on Wednesday, saving three match points against compatriot Julie Coin along the way. Her opponent in the last eight will be top seed Ana Ivanovic, who also flirted with disaster in the evening session before suppressing Roberta Vinci.

The trademark fist punch finally returned for top seed Ana Ivanovic after Italian qualifier Roberta Vinci threatened to deliver a stunning second-round knockout at the Brisbane International on Wednesday night.

A shellshocked Ivanovic was forced to save two match points in the second set after world No.82 Vinci came out swinging at Pat Rafter Arena.

The former world No.1 was also kept honest by several dubious line calls in the second set, prompting spirited debate with chair umpire Gabriela Zaloga of Poland.

It may have taken three and a quarter hours and five match points but Amelie Mauresmo finally saw off the challenge of compatriot Julie Coin to move into the quarter-finals of the Brisbane International.

Mauresmo, of France, joined countrywoman Marion Bartoli in the last eight when she beat Coin 5-7, 6-2, 7-6 (13/11) in a superb second round clash that belied the difference in class and experience between the two players.

Former Wimbledon finalist Marion Bartoli says an eight-week break, a holiday in the Seychelles and a football match in Marseilles have been the ideal preparation as she heads into this month's Australian Open.

The 24-year-old Frenchwoman moved into the quarterfinals of the Brisbane International on Tuesday when she downed unheralded Hungarian Melinda Czink 5-7, 6-3, 6-1.

Serbian Ana Ivanovic says starting 2009 without a recognised coach won't derail her quest to build on her stunning ascent to the peak of women's tennis.

Despite capturing her first grand slam title at Roland Garros in 2008 and making the Australian Open final in the same year, Ivanovic has made the bold decision to split with coach Sven Groeneveld.

She is going it alone at the Brisbane International, her entourage made up of a hitting partner and fitness coach.

In Belgrade, she is bigger than Bond. When a feature-length documentary about Jelena Jankovic was released at cinemas, giving an insight into what her life is like beyond the tramlines, it bumped Quantum of Solace into second place in the Serbian box office. Maybe that was because Jankovic's action scenes were not partly computer-generated, and that the tennis plot was a little less clunky than James Bond's, or simply that Serbia preferred its own world No. 1 to 007.

Last year's runner-up Victoria Azarenka and former Wimbledon finalist Marion Bartoli highlighted Tuesday's second-round winners at the $220,000 Brisbane International, a season- opening event on the WTA Tour.

So many things happened in 2008 that kept tennis fans on the edge of their seats, biting their finger nails, and desperately wanting more.

Second seed Victoria Azarenka has survived an early scare at the Brisbane International, after being pushed to the limit by Slovak-born Australian and world No.98 Jarmila Gajdosova in their second-round match.

Visibly frustrated by a series of dubious line calls, Azarenka finally settled against an impressive Gajdosova to win 7-6(4) 7-5 and proceed to the third round, keeping alive the hopes of a showdown against top seed Ana Ivanovic.

It was a good day all round for the top-ranked women, with third seed Marion Bartoli from France also making it through.